Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis (WUSM) seeks an impactful scientist-leader with outstanding personal research accomplishments and demonstrated administrative ability to serve as the next head of the Department of Neuroscience. One of six preclinical departments in WUSM, the Department of Neuroscience includes 29 full-time and 37 affiliated faculty with notably diverse foci spanning molecular and cellular neuroscience and systems neuroscience. Renowned for its cutting-edge research and innovative educational opportunities, the department is an epicenter for seminal discoveries and training the next generation of scientists, and it plays a critical role in the neuroscience community at Washington University. This recruitment represents the latest in a series of key investments in the growth of basic sciences at WUSM and the incoming head will have the singular opportunity to lead a top-ranked department to continued eminence and build on the impressive research and education programs consistent with the standards of one of the most preeminent schools of medicine in the country.

Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has 2,379 faculty and 8,143 staff. In fiscal year 2018, grants and contracts totaling more than $624 million supported faculty research efforts. The School is comprised of 20 departments and is home to over 1,400 students. Attracting an exceptional group of residents and fellows as trainees, WUSM ranks first in the nation in the entering scores of its medical school classes and was recently ranked number eight in comprehensive medical schools by U.S. News & World Report. Eighteen Nobel laureates have been associated with the School of Medicine, 11 of its present faculty members have been elected to the National Academy of Sciences, and 20 faculty members belong to the National Academy of Medicine (Institute of Medicine). WUSM has extraordinary distinction in the life sciences and biological sciences, was recently ranked third in the nation in NIH funding, and leads research globally in a wide range of frontier research arenas across all of its basic science and clinical departments.

The Head of Neuroscience will join a thriving institution at a remarkable time. WUSM invests significantly in science, both with dollars and space, and this commitment is particularly evident for the Department of Neuroscience. In 2023, WUSM will open a new facility for Neuroscience Research that will include neuroscientists from across the entire medical school. This will align brain science researchers, create space for interdisciplinary science, and further position Washington University and St. Louis as a national hub of technology and biomedical research. The department’s transition to this new space will usher in a new and exciting phase for neurosciences at Washington University and the overarching charge for the incoming head will be to maintain and strengthen excellence throughout the unit. The successful head will articulate a vision to guide the department to its next level of impact in research; support the department’s teaching mission and educational activities; grow effective partnerships with the many other centers of strength present at the University; recruit, mentor, and retain an increasingly distinguished and diverse faculty; and serve as an effective financial steward to continue the department’s growth and success.

To read the full position description and to submit inquiries, nominations/referrals, and applications, visit Isaacson, Miller’s website at www.imsearch.com/7175